Water water everywhere but not a drop to drink!

Each person in the UK uses 150 litres of water a day. This takes into account cooking, cleaning, washing and flushing. This has been rising by 1% a year since 1930. This consumption level is not sustainable in the long-term.

Climate Change and the water you use

For each mouthful of water you drink or bucket full you splash into your bath, for every time you flush your loo or let water down the drain, there is a significant process behind this that has an impact on the environment.  This is due to the chemicals and electricity required to clean the water and move it around.  And for all the hot water you use in your bath or shower, there is the additional energy that was needed to get it up to the temperature you wanted it at!

In addition to the resources required to get the water up to a useable standard and temperature, there is an issue with supply.  I realise this sounds very strange considering that we are an island and the vast amounts of rainfall we have!  However, as the effects of climate change continue, we may experience differences and more unpredictable patterns in our rain fall.  Periods of drought may become more frequent as well as heavy rain.  Both of these have implication on the collection of water for use.

Current levels of scarcity:

The UK has less available water per person than most other European countries. London is drier than Istanbul, and the South East of England has less water available per person than the Sudan and Syria.

Water is scarce in parts of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as well as in England - large scale drought is already occurring in the UK, with the lowest rainfall, groundwater and reservoir levels for decades.

Fixing a dripping tap can save as much as 5000 litres a year – if everyone in the UK fixed their dripping taps we would save enough water to supply 120,000 for one day

Showers v’s Baths

Running tap uses 6 litres of water a minute, a shower can use anywhere between 9 – 45 litres per minute.  Consider how much water you put into your bath, and consider the length of time you spend in the shower.  The most economic choice would be a shower, but not a long shower!  Power showers are an issue because they use additional energy to run, so keep these even shorter! (a 5 minute shower every day for a week in a power shower can use5.25 kWh of electricity!).  Also take into account the energy to heat the water!

Try this link to see how much water you use: http://electric.virginmedia.com/1Z4a8929a00533d012.cde/page/10

Watering your plants and gardens

A hosepipe uses as much as 1000 litres per hour!

• Use the leftover water from your bath to water your plants!
• Water Butts - Invest in a water butt and connect it to your drainpipe in your garden - this can then collect some of the 85,000 litres of rainfall that falls on your roof every year. This water can be used to water your garden, clean your car and wash your windows
• Use water gel in your plant pots, especially hanging baskets, as it stope the water evaporating so quickly.  For example http://www.hozelock-aquapod.com/ or  http://www.amazon-irrigation.com/acatalog/Water_Gel.html

Teeth cleaning

We all know we should turn the tap off while we are brushing but do we all do it????

When you brush your teeth, turn the tap off in between rinses. This can save as much as six litres of water a minute – which is about 24 litres of water a day – that’s 168 litres of water a week!

Water Hippos

Toilet flushing accounts for 30% of our daily water use – with old toilets using as much as 14 litres per flush compared to new dual flush models which use as little as 2.6 and 4 litres per flush.

If you don’t have a dual flush loo, install a water saving device in your cistern.  Commonly known as a ‘water hippo’!  They are so simple to use, they just need to be popped into the cistern!

!!!! FREE !!!! Shower device

For those of you that have a shower in your bath, you can send off for one of these water saving devices for free!!!

http://www.ekmpowershop9.com/ekmps/shops/eagashop4/

Drinking Water

Encourage your family to fill a plastic bottle with water and put it in the fridge. This way when you want a cold glass of water you can simply open the fridge rather than running the tap until the water runs cold.

Facts gathered from http://www.waterwise.org.uk